There is no better time for you to commit to your annual meditation cycle than Vesak, which happens to occur on May full moon day—today. This Vesak is very unique because it also coincides with a lunar eclipse.
Every full moon is a big deal in Sri Lanka, where I was traveling on a motorbike a few years ago. The moon is celebrated all over the country, and these festivities do not only occur in Sri Lanka. Vesak, also known as Buddha Jayanti, Buddha Purnima, and Buddha Day, is a holiday traditionally observed by Buddhists in South Asia and Southeast Asia, as well as Tibet and Mongolia. The festival commemorates the birth, enlightenment, and death of Gautama Buddha. Vesak is always celebrated on Full Moon Day in May.
Meditation is a simple but powerful practice. Gautama Buddha propagated like no one else. However, meditation is not only a Buddhist practice. Even in Egypt, meditation was well known. Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Zarathustrian, Christian, Mayan, Aztec, New Age, indigenous medicine tribes, and Muslim mystics all practice meditation. But what for?
The simple answer is peace of mind.
Apparently, scientists have discovered that twenty minutes of mindful meditation practice every day changes the biochemistry of the brain. The body heals faster, stress and hormone levels harmonize, and it’s easier to focus and clear the mind when regularly meditating. But then you might wonder, Why doesn’t everyone meditate on an ongoing basis? Another simple answer is that we have not been trained to, but we can train ourselves!
With Vesak happening right now, an annual commitment to start to meditate regularly on a daily basis would certainly change the biochemistry of your brain within the next two months, and it would make you more happy and peaceful, more calm, and healthier—all without drugs! Twenty minutes sitting still might seem like a short time, but when you are not used to it, time can stretch itself a long way. That’s why it’s recommended to start with achievable goals, even if that means a minute, and slowly increase it every day until one gets to the minimum of twenty minutes per day. Forty minutes is epic! The emphasis is on every day.
Buddha meditated for six years, so the story goes, before he got fully enlightened. I bet if anyone were so committed to doing that today (under a tree in nature), they would be quicker to get to the point of freeing themselves from Samsara. Buddha was a determined fellow who gave up his entire wealth and kingdom. He ended up helping humanity a lot. In fact, if we would all follow Buddha’s advice (which we can) and meditate every day instead of drinking alcohol, watching movies, or getting lost in senseless gratifications and endless bill payments as a result of that, the world would be a much happier and peaceful place. Your world!
When I was in Bangkok during Vesak, I visited one of the biggest Buddhist temples in the world, where I was taught by monks how to meditate. If you want to learn how to meditate and learn it from monks right now, check out this link. We will also teach advanced meditation techniques and training programs here at Omananda.com, and when you sign up for our free newsletter, you’ll be the first to take advantage of them.
So, I wish you a wonderful Full Moon Vesak day or night. I’ll now continue to meditate, and of course, my meditation is also writing… Enjoy your day and life.
With love, Omananda
